Diverter tub spouts are well known and commonly in use in bathtub plumbing arrangements including a shower head to divert water from the spout to the shower head when desired. Such diverter spouts eliminate the need for a separate spoutshower head selector control and allow savings on both installation and hardware costs. This water diversion from the tub spout to the shower head is provided, of course, by valve means that block water flow through the spout.
The plumbing fixtures art long has recognized the advantages in reliability and ease of manufacture of water passage closure valves utilizing a floating, ball shaped valve member that utilizes the pressure force of the flowing water to seat against a valve surface. An example of such a valve arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,128,627, issued Aug. 30, 1938. Also, closure valves utilizing this principal have been used in diverter tub spouts as may be seen from the disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 2,663,539, issued Dec. 22, 1953.
Certain problems in operation have been encountered, however, during use by consumers of prior art diverter tub spouts relative to two desirable features for these plumbing hardware items. First, it is desirable that no unwanted interruption of water flow through the tub spout, and sudden discharge through the shower head be experienced. In diverter tub spouts using a true free floating valve member design, it is possible in situations where high water line pressure exists or pressure surges are encountered, for high water pressure or turbulence resulting therefrom to dislodge the floating valve member from its non-blocking storage position and result in an unwanted blockage of the spout water passage.
The prior art has taught the avoidance of this problem by the use of mechanical valve control structure to hold physically the valve member away from the seat in the non-blocking mode. It has been found, however, that certain designs with such structure allow unwanted spout blockage due to slippage of mechanical valve stops in high pressure, turbulence and vibration situations. Other mechanical valve control structure, such as is disclosed in the previously mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 2,128,627, positively maintain the floating valve member remote from the valve seat. But such arrangements do not provide a second feature desirable for diverter tub spouts. This feature is the automatic return of the valve member to the non-blocking mode from the blocking mode when water pressure in the spout is terminated or falls below a predetermined level. This automatic return feature prevents a startling shower head discharge when a tub user attempts to draw bath water following a shower by the preceding user.
It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a diverter tub spout that utilizes the floating valve principal to block water flow through the spout selectively, while eliminating the possibility of an unwanted blockage regardless of water passage pressure, turbulence or vibration conditions. Another object of this invention is to provide such a diverter tub spout wherein the floating valve member automatically moves from its water passage blocking position to a non-blocking position upon the water pressure in the spout water passage falling below a predetermined level. Still another object of this invention is the provision of a diverter tub spout having the advantages described above and that is simple in design, exonomical to manufacture and reliable in operation.